Body Part Mathematics

First name and surname: Marie Hofmannová

E-mail address: marie.hofmannova@pedf.cuni.cz

Institution: Charles University, Prague, Faculty of Education

Country: Czech Republic

Target group: learners aged 15 – 16

Subjects: Mathematics, English as a foreign language

Aims:

1. Introducing the concept of body part counting and measuring.
2. Presenting examples from different cultures worldwide.
3. Demonstrating the way “body part mathematics” reflects in diverse number systems.
4. Exploring multilingual/cultural aspects of body part counting and measuring.

Key competences:

• Communication in L1 (the mother tongue or the language of instruction)
  • negotiating meaning in reading comprehension tasks
  • discussing the concepts and findings

• Communication in English and other foreign languages
  • improving reading comprehension skills
  • learning and practicing new vocabulary for problem solving
  • enhancing fluency through discussions in pairs
  • including the languages of the learners present in the classroom

• Learning to learn
  • looking up information with the help of bilingual or monolingual dictionaries
  • exploring diversity through comparing different European languages

• Digital competences
  • exploring diversity through comparing different counting and measuring systems
  • looking for relevant information on the Internet

• Social and civic competences
  • learning to cooperate in multilingual/cultural pairs
  • learning about the cultures of the pupils present in the classroom
  • learning about diversity from the history of mathematics

Timing of the overall activities: at least one 90-minute lesson or a sequence of shorter lesson stages.

Resources and materials needed: bilingual / monolingual dictionaries, access to the Internet, map of the world.

Focus on content: Mathematics (body part counting and measuring, number systems).

Focus on language:
Vocabulary: everyday language (names of body parts in different languages), subject specific terminology: language of Mathematics (number systems, units of length).
Grammar: speculating, i.e. expressing modality (Worksheet 3).